GILBERT: DIA millage looks like a bargain

It is difficult to view the Detroit Institute of Arts tax issue as anything but a bargain.

Voters in Oakland, Wayne and Macomb counties will decide the fate of the DIA's request for a 0.2 millage for 10 years in the Aug. 7 primary.

That would cost the owner of a home with a fair market value of $150,000 just $15 a year.

In exchange, the DIA would provide free general admission any time for all residents of approving counties -- a value well in excess of the small amount paid per household. It currently costs a household with two adults and two children $24 for general admission.

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In seeking public funding, DIA is following the model set by the Detroit Zoo's successful 2008 campaign, which was similarly reviewed and approved by commissioners in Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties.

Oakland commissioners approved putting the measure on the ballot in a 15-9 vote, but it is doubtful any of the opponents are negative about the museum itself.

Commissioner John Scott, R-Waterford, said he felt the issue should have been placed on the November general election ballot. He also said he thought members of the county's new arts authority, which will have a voice in how the DIA is governed if the issue is approved, should have been appointed by majority caucus members instead of the board chairman.

The chairman will appoint two members while the minority caucus will name one.

"That's more than the governor and more than the president," Runstead said.

Museum officials defend Beal's compensation as comparable to that of directors of similar institutions.

Runstead also said that the bulk of the people who will vote on the millage live in the more populous southern portion of the county, while his constituents "just feel overtaxed."

The 0.2 mill would raise approximately $23 million: $10 million in Oakland County, $8 million in Wayne County and $5 million in Macomb County.

The DIA had been supported by public funds from 1893 to the early 1990s. For nearly 100 years, the Detroit general fund and private philanthropy provided sole support for the museum. An appropriately sized operating endowment -- an important component of the business model for most large cultural organizations -- was never established.

In the 1970s, the state of Michigan recognized the museum's contribution to the entire state and incorporated financial support for the museum into the state budget. Beginning in the early 1990s, state support for the museum was slowly but steadily reduced, a situation that was accelerated as a series of economic downturns hit the state. At the same time, the city's ability to support the museum was sharply reduced until all city funding was eliminated.

The elimination of all public funding for operations has required the museum to turn almost entirely to the private sector, an operating model that is not sustainable, particularly in the current economy, museum officials say.

The museum's ultimate goal is to become financially self-sustaining through its endowment. Officials feel the 10-year duration of the millage will allow it to build up the endowment. Proceeds of the millage would only be used for operations, however.

Is the DIA a well-run institution?

The independent, New Jersey-based organization Charity Navigator rates it as a two-star institution.

"The DIA's two-star ranking is basically a reflection of its current financial condition, which would be resolved with passage of the millage," said DIA spokesman Bob Berg.

Charity Navigator uses a two-dimensional rating system for charities, which ranks charities in two separate components: 1) financial health; and 2) accountability and transparency. Each dimension is scored on a scale of 0 to 70.

"The DIA's total score is 48, which is at the high end of the two-star range," Berg said. "However, when you break down the score into the two separate components, you will see that the DIA's financial health score is 41, which is at the low end of the two-star range, while the accountability and transparency score is 59, one point shy of a four-star rating."

The DIA is thought to have significant economic benefit on Southeastern Michigan. Its 400,000 annual visitors support local business by spending money on parking, local restaurants and shops.

Of the average annual attendance, 32 percent come from Wayne County, 19 percent from Oakland County, and 10 percent from Macomb County.

In the 2011-12 fiscal year, the DIA spent the following on vendor goods and services: Wayne County, $4,394,873; Oakland County: $2,295,777; Macomb County: $415,555.

Nobody should presume to tell voters what they can or cannot afford. Senior citizens have been hit with new state taxes on their pensions and some communities have raised their own taxes to pay for services or projects.

But the decision voters make should be well thought out. Even if you never go or have never been to the DIA, think about your neighbor and, in particular, young people and schoolchildren brought in on field trips.

Don't base your decision on a whim or a flimsy reason like begrudging the director his salary.

Keep the big picture in focus. DIA is a world-class institution. Let's not shoot ourselves in the foot.